Morphology, development and comparative anatomical evaluation of the testicular excretory pathway in Acipenser.

In the differentiated state, the testicular excurrent duct system of the sturgeon begins as a longitudinal marginal network of the testis, extending along the entire length of the male gonad. From here, mesorchial transversal ducts travel to the ventral aspect of the pars sexualis of the opisthonephros where they merge behind the dorsal coelomic wall to form the longitudinal marginal network of the kidney. Then, the seminal pathways enter the confines of the pars sexualis of the opisthonephros and divide into a complicated, multipartite system consisting of (1) centropapillary ducts, situated in the center of a group of urinary collecting ducts, (2) lacunary basal sinuses, located on the bases of opisthonephric columns and (3) intracolumnar ducts running inside the renal columns, the latter representing typical functional units of the adult sturgeon kidney. The contacts between intracolumnar ducts and the vascular poles of corresponding renal corpuscles represent the urogenital junction in the sturgeon. The nephrons of the pars sexualis involved in sperm transport do not lose their urinary functions, but are histologically identical to those of the pars excretoria which are solely urinary. The opisthonephros of sturgeons grows continuously by the formation of new nephrons from an opisthonephric blastema located on the base of each renal column. A close topographical association between this blastema tissue and the lacunary basal sinuses of the testicular excurrent duct system guarantees that new renal corpuscles in the pars sexualis are included in the seminal passage from their beginning. From the urogenital junctions, on their way to the exterior, the spermatozoa have to travel through Bowman's capsules and tubules of the nephrons involved, then through the urinary collecting ducts, the wolffian duct and finally the sinus urogenitalis. The development of the testicular excurrent duct system begins in 8-month-old animals in the pregonadal area of the gonadal fold. Here, a primary gonoductal blastema proliferates to form a longitudinal network of anastomosing strands, situated in the dorsal mesogonadal attachment. From this primary longitudinal network, small tubules grow into the direction of the opisthonephros and into the direction of the testis. In the period from 8 to 18 months, the testicular excurent duct system reaches the adult state. In conclusion, the testicular excurrent ducts of sturgeons initially develop similar to those of Polypterus and in modern teleosts from a primary longitudinal system, beginning in the pregonadal area, localized in the mesogonadal attachment and extending caudally. Then, in a second step of development, the phylogenetically older situation, using parts of the kidney as passage, already seen in Chondrichthyes, but preserved also in higher vertebrates, is achieved in Acipenser. For this, seminal ducts grow into the opisthonephros and establish here the urogenital junctions with corresponding renal corpuscles. Furthermore, the initially longitudinally oriented ducts in the mesogonadal attachment partly lose their continuity and become integrated into the course of the transversal mesorchial ducts, represented by their portions with the widest lumina and the thickest walls.     

Flaw detection by spatially coded backscatter radiography.

Backscatter imaging is useful for inspecting structures that are accessible only from one side. However, indications provided by scattered radiation are typically weak, convoluted and difficult to interpret. This paper explores the use of the coded aperture technique to detect flaws using gamma-ray backscatter imaging. The viability of this approach is demonstrated with indications obtained from Monte Carlo simulations of radiation scattering measurements. The results show that, with a 2 mm wide beam of 137Cs photons, flaws as small as 1.5 mm in width can be detected using this technique. Indications of changes in flaw size, location, multiplicity and density were also observable. In addition, it is possible to quantify, from the decoded indications, the flaw location and its size.     

Degradable injectable bone cement in maxillofacial surgery: indications and clinical experience in 27 patients.

BACKGROUND: A carbonated apatite cement (NORIAN SRS) was used as a bone mineral substitute for the calvaria or viscerocranium in 27 patients. It has the consistency of a paste and hardens at physiologic pH and body temperature due to dahllite crystallization, which has the stoichiometric formula Ca(8.8)(HPO(4))(0.7)(PO(4))(4.5)(CO(3))(0.7)(OH)(1.3). MATERIAL AND METHODS: The cement was used for posttraumatic bone defects in the orbital, periorbital or malar regions (nine patients), posttraumatic deformities of the frontal bone (six patients), tumour-dependent bony defects of the calvaria (two patients) and posttraumatic or cystic defects of the mandible (five patients). In another five patients, the material was used to augment the atrophic anterior mandible in combination with the insertion of dental implants. Follow-up varied between 6 and 40 months (mean: 29 months). RESULTS: There was no inflammatory reaction surrounding the implanted material. There was no sign of infection in any of the patients and only one case of partial wound dehiscence with superficially exposed material. The defect fillings and augmentations were successful in all patients. None of the 19 dental implants which were inserted in combination with the material showed any sign of infection or loosening. Also, there was no loosening of the implants after loading (mean follow-up: 15 months). From the check-up radiographs, the material could be seen as a dense, radio-opaque structure. There were no material fractures or dislocations. Radiologically, the material seemed to be completely replaced by bony tissue after 30 months. CONCLUSION: Our 5-year clinical experience suggests that the material is a suitable bone mineral substitute for cranio-maxillofacial surgery especially for moderate-sized defects of the calvaria and forehead bone. It has advantages over preformed, solid bone substitute materials, and, due to its initial plasticity and eventual great compressive strength, it can also stabilize dental endosseous implants in the atrophic mandible.     

Architectural alterations in rat cerebral microvessels after hypobaric hypoxia

We performed 3-dimensional studies of vascular casts of the microvasculature of the cerebral cortex of rats that were exposed to three weeks of hypobaric hypoxia and of control rats. Scanning electron microscopy of the casts gave the qualitative impression of increased vascularity of the cerebral cortex, particularly the deeper layers, in hypoxic rats. Quantitative analysis of capillary segment lengths revealed a significant shift in the frequency distribution to longer lengths (from 77 ± 8 to 90 ± 14 μm) in the deep, but not in the superficial, layers of the cerebral cortex of hypoxic rats. These findings agree with previous results reporting increased capillary density in the brain after exposure to prolonged hypobaric hypoxia and suggest that capillary segment elongation plays a role in the increased capillary density in the deeper layers of the cerebral cortex.     

Linear and Whorled Nevoid Hypermelanosis: Report of a Case Associated with Cerebral Palsy

Abstract: A child had cerebral palsy and linear and whorled nevoid hypermelanosis on the right side of his body. He had spasticity and wasting in both lower limbs, with electroencephalographic changes and brain abnormalities on computerized tomographic scan. Chromosomal study of peripheral blood leukocytes found a normal male karyotype. The pathogenesis of this condition is still unclear.     

Top-down and bottom-up processes in the extrastriate cortex of cirrhotic patients: an ERP study.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to evaluate the efficiency of top-down and bottom-up processes in the extrastriate cortex of cirrhotic patients without overt hepatic encephalopathy (HE). METHODS: Reaction times (RTs), accuracy and event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded during the execution of a visual Simon task in 17 cirrhotic patients and 10 healthy controls. Amplitude and latency of the P1 and N1 (indexes of bottom-up processes) and of the N2pc (index of top-down processes) were measured. RESULTS: Patients were slower than controls, and patients with minimal HE (MHE) were slower than patients without MHE. The distribution analysis of RTs showed that the Simon effect decays with slower RTs in all the groups and that the shape of the distribution was different in MHE patients. No differences were found between cirrhotic patients and controls for P1 and N1 amplitude and latency. In contrast, N2pc latency was delayed in cirrhotic patients compared to controls independently of MHE. CONCLUSIONS: In the extrastriate cortex of cirrhotic patients without HE, top-down processes are altered whereas bottom-up processes are preserved. SIGNIFICANCE: The analysis of exogenous and endogenous visual components of ERPs provides a model to study the functional dissociation between top-down and bottom-up processes inside the extrastriate cortex.     

Schistosomiasis in a cystic teratoma of the ovary

The authors report the case of an ovarian teratoma infected by the eggs of the trematode Schistosoma haematobium. In consideration of the rare observation, bearing a paradigmatic value, they briefly discuss the particular tropism that the parasite demonstrated towards some tumoral structures and they also outline the immunological mechanisms activated by the Schistosoma.